FORA error being fixed

FORA contractors are busy fixing 200 signs posted on the former Army base over the weekend with the wrong web address.

Bicyclists and other recreational users on the base found the signs, warning them, "For your SAFETY, Stay on this corridor," with the web address fora-rp-esca.com. The address is actually fora-esca-rp.com.

While a Google search of the faulty address will suggest the right location, simply typing in the URL will get you nowhere. FORA spokeswoman Candy Ingram said it was a simple editing mistake.

The signs are an outgrowth of a June 24 action by members of Veterans Wild Fort Ord who entered a restricted area, mowed weeds and erected a "Soldiers Memorial Field" sign in a call for preserving open space to honor soldiers who trained at Fort Ord.

FORA alerted the Army, Environmental Protection Agency and state Department of Toxic Substances Control, which have worked with recreation groups to keep specific trails open during ongoing munitions clearing.

The regulators responded with letters threatening to close the entire base until it can be cleaned and transferred to local jurisdictions if FORA did not get the matter under control.

FORA Executive Officer Michael Houlemard said the agency has been experiencing ongoing problems with trespassers removing warning signs on the base.

"We're trying to keep people from being in a situation where they're at risk," he said. "There are still many areas restricted by regulators and we have to comply with those."

Groups like Keep Fort Ord Wild dispute the danger of many of the restricted areas and say people have been using the trails for sanctioned activities for years.

Houlemard said FORA contractor Arcadis, which is in charge of the munitions-clearing project, was required to post the new signs at a cost of about $40,000. He said he was not sure if the web address mistake was Arcadis' or the sign maker's, but the cost to them of printing stickers with the correct URL would be nominal.